Corn harvester



June 27, 1933. w. J. couLTAs ET A1.

CORN HARVESTER Filed NOV. 8, 1929 uw www u Patented June 27, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WELB'UR J. COUL-TAS AND NOLAN D. COLVIN, OF FIGLINE, LLINOIS, ASSIGNRS y'IO DEERE & COMPANY, GF MOLINE, ILLNOIiA CORPORATION *0F ILLINOIS CORN HARVESTER Application filed November This invention relates to corn harvesters having a discharging elevator which conveys the corn ears from the harvester to a wagon which is drawn along at one side of the harvester by atractor which pulls the harvester, and has to do primarily with the construction of the elevator and the hopper connected therewith, which hopper receives the corn ears from the husking rolls and delivers them to theelevator.

Corn harvesters are quite wide when in operative position in the field, and itis therefore desirable that when transporting them their over-all width be reduced to a minimum so as to facilitate passage of the machine through farm lanes, gates, doorways, etc. lt is also desirable in a machine of this type that. it be well balanced when being transported, and in order to so balance the machine it is necessary that the center of gravity oi the elevator be brought between the two carrying wheels when the elevator is swung upward to place it in transport position so that the weight of the elevator will be carried by both wheels. In prior constructions the outer or discharge end of the elevator can be swung upwardly to some extent to re-A duce the over-all width of the machine, but still projects to an objectionable degree beyond the side or tread width of the machine, preventing passage through narrow spaces, nor can such prior constructions of elevators be swung upwardly far enough so that the center of gravity of the elevator is brought between the two carrying wheels, and this is so because of the tact that the hopper at the lower end of the elevator which receives the corn ears from the husking rolls is permanently secured in fixed position to the lower end portion of the elevator, said hopper preventing upward movement of the elevator beyond the plane of' the outer end of the hopper. lVith this old construction the hopper was so designed that the elevator could be swung upwardly to some eX- tent for transport, butwhen so swung up it still projected considerably from the side of the machine, and the center of gravity of the elevator was in a plane outside of the plane of the carrying wheel on the elevator side of 8, 1929. Serial No. 405,591.

the harvester. Also, in such old constructions, by designing the hopper so as tor permit this limited upward swinging movement of the elevator said hopper did not effectively receive the ears from the husking rolls. lVith the above ,in view, it is the principal object of our invention to provide a hopper so connected withthe elevator nearits lower yend portion as to be movable with relation to the elevator for accommodating movement of the elevator into a substantially vertical position when the harvester is to be transported. l v Another object of our invention is toprovide such a construction of elevator and hopper whereby the elevator may beswung to such a position as to bring the center of gravity ot the elevator inside the carrying wheels when the harvester is to be transported.

A further object vis to provide a combined elevatorand hopper of such construction that the hopper may be easily and quickly moved out of operative position as desired to permit movement of the elevator into `a substantially vertical position when the harvester islto be transported.

Further objects and advantageous features will appear from the following description of our invention taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a rear view of a corn harvester showing the discharge elevator and its mov.- able hopper in operating position, and illustrating the hopper in full lines in its operative position and in dotted lines in its. inoperative or transport position; Y V

v Figure 2 is a perspective viewdf a portion of the rear side of the machine looking from a forward point on the right hand side thereof as shown in Figure l, showing the elevator and its hopper `in transport position; and y, Figure 3 is an venlarged cross-sectional view taken on the line 3-3xof Figure l. Y'

The general design of the-cornharvester illustrated in the drawing is of conventional form and will be but briefly described.k As' shown', -indicates the harvester as a whole supported-on carrying wheels 6, the rear two of which are shown in Figure 1. The haI'-, vester illustrated comprises the usual gather- Cil ers 7 between which are mounted the snapping rolls 8. Suitable elevator or conveying Y though it may be derived from a separatev motor on the harvester or from the traction power of the wheels 6.

An elevator, indicated as a whole by the reference numeral 11, is supported at its lower end on theV harvester adjacent to the right hand rear corner thereof as shown in Figure 1, and it is connected to the harvester by a pair of brackets 12 secured 'at one end by rivets or bolts to the lower portions of the opposite'side walls of the elevator, theopposite ends of said brackets embracing a drive shaft 13 suitably journaled at opposite sides of the elevator in bearings carried by frame members of the harvester, as shown in Figure 3. This drive shaft 13 is provided for driving the elevating mechanism within the elevator 11, and it is driven by a driving chain 14 running over a sprocket wheel 15 keyed or otherwise secured thereto. The bottom 16 and sides 17 of the elevator are formed of a single piece of sheet metal bent as shown in Figure 3. Suitably supported between the side walls of the elevator is a board 18 which extends from the lower to the upper end of the elevator and along which the corn ears are conveyed' to the upper endthereof for delivery to a wagon which is drawn along at one side of the harvester by the tractor. The elevator is provided at its upper and lower ends with sprocket wheels 19, the lower one of which is shownv in Figure v3. This lower sprocket wheels is keyed to the elevator drive shaft 13 so as to be driven thereby. A driving chain 21 is trained over said sprocket wheels 19, and. at spaced intervals therealong it is provided with conveying paddles 22 which in operation are moved along the upp er` surface of the board 8 in'their upward movement, said paddles conveying the corn ears up through the elevator for discharge through the outlet chute 23 into the wagon. The parts of the harvesterandy elevator thus far described having nothing to do, in and of themselves, with the present invention, and it is believed that the brief description thereofgiven will suice.

Coming now to the parts of the harvesterr to which our present invention relates, 24 indicates our improved movable hopper which is connected to the elevator onthe upper side portion thereof near its lower end. In Figure 1 the hopper is shown in operative position, while in Figure 2 it is shown in inoperative position. vWhen in operative position it occupies the space between the outer` ends of the husking rolls and the lower end of the elevator for receiving the corn ears discharged from said rolls, after the husks have been removed, for delivering the same to the elevator. rEhe hopper comprises outwardly fiared side wall members 25, 26 and a rear wall member 27. rEhe lower edge of each of the side wall members 25, 26 is bent downwardly, as shown in Figure 3, to provide lip portions 28. Spaced a short distance from each of these lip portions is a metal strip 29, see Figure 3, the upper edge of which is suitably secured to the respective side member 25, 26, while the lower edge portions of each `of said strips. 29 extends parallel with its respective lip portion 28. The parts-28 and 29 on either side of the hopper, as will be seen from said figure, form a slot or groove for accommodating the adjacent top edge of the two opposite sides of the elevator, so as to completely close the space between the sides of the elevator and the hopper, as will be readily understood.

The back` wall member 27 of the hopper is provided at its loweredge with a toothed member 31 suitably hinged thereto at 32, and so arranged that, it can swing upwardly. Downward movement of the member 31 is prevented in any well known manner, so that the ears cannot fall back pastr the same toward the husking rolls.

` The hopper 2Lfisheld down on the elevator 11 by its own weight and the frictional engagement between the members 28, 29 at eitherside of Jdie hopper and the respective side walls 17 of the elevator, but in order to prevent accidental movement upwardly of said hopper when the harvester is in operation and the corn ears are being delivered to the hopper from the husking rolls, we provide a pair of links 33, one on each side of the hopper, which links are pivotally connected at one end to the side walls of the hopper as shown at 33a, while `the opposite ends of said links are pivotally connected at 335 Vtothe respective side walls of the elevator, as shown in Figure 1. Suit-ably secured on each side wall 17 of the elevator adjacent to the link 33 isa spring clip 341, so positioned that when the hopper is in its operative position down on the elevator, as shown inFigure 1, the spring clips partially embrace the links 33, thereby preventing movement of said links and holding the hopper down irmly in position.

j rlhe elevator is held in its working or operative position as shown in Figure 1, in which position it delivers the corn ears to the adjacent wagon, by means of a rod 35 pivoted at one end to a bracket 35 fixed to the harvester frame. The opposite end of the rod 35 is pivotally connected to a V-shaped rod member 36, the opposite ends of which are pivotally connected at 37 to the opposite side walls of the elevator 11, as shown in Figure 2.

lVhen the harvester is to be transported, it is desirable that the elevator be swung to a vertical position, as' before mentioned, andv this is accomplished by swinging the hopper relatively to the elevator, without disconnecting it from the elevator, by means of the links 33 which are pivotally connected to the hopper and to the elevator. The hopper is first forcibly pulled out of the position rshown in Figure l, to move the parts 28, 29 of the hopper away from the side walls 17 of the elevator, the spring clips 34 being resilient enough so that they will spring back sufficiently to disengage from the links 33. The hopper is then swung into the position shown in dotted lines in Figure l, the links 33 turning on their pivot connections 33?) with the side walls 17 ofthe elevator, while the hopper swings on its pivot connections 33a with the links 33. As shown in Figure 2, when the hopper 24 is swung out of operative position the opposite side walls 25, 26 thereof are positioned at opposite side `of the elevator, such side walls being thus permitted to embrace the elevator because there isl no bottom portion extending between said side walls. it will thus be seen that with the hopper swung up to the position shown in dotted lines in Figure l and full lines in Figure 2 it will not interfere with the movement of the elevator into a` vertical position, such as that shown in Figure 2. In such vertical position the outer side of the elevator lies substantially in the plane of the adjacent supporting wheel 6, or inwardly of said plane, `so that the elevator does not project beyond the tread width of the wheels` 6. Such position also places the center of gravity of the elevator between the two wheels so that the weight of the elevator is borne on both wheels.

Two swinging hooks 38 are provided, one pivotally mounted on veach side of the elevator, which are adapted to hook around an ear retarding control shaft of the machine, indicated by the numeral 39, to hold the elevator in its vertical position during transport. Suclishaft 39 constitutes a contiol niei'nher disposed substantially at theends of the huslting rolls'and transversely thereto, and serving through the manipulation of a control handle or handles 4l to raise or lower a cover 42 from which depend the retarding plates which retard or hold the ears of corn against the husking rolls, all as disclosed in the copending application of Louis A. Paradise and Wilbur J. Coultas on Corn picking machines, Serial No. 242,370, iiled December 24, 1927. Y

By reason of the pivotal connection between the -rod 35 and the il-shaped rod meinber 36 these two members will havejackknife movement relative to each other when the elevator is moved into and out of operative position.

YVe claim: Y

. l. The combination with a corn harvester having husking rolls and a discharge elevator adapted to receive corn ears from said huskng rolls, of means inovably mounted on said elevator adapted to receive saidcorii ears from said husking rolls and deliver them to said elevator.

2. The combination with a corn harvester having husking rolls and a discharge ciclator adapted to receive corn ears from said liuskin g rolls, of means lniovably mounted on said elevator adapted to receive said corn ears from said husking rolls and deliver them to said elevator, said means being positioned between said elevator and said husking rolls.

3. The combination with a cornharvester lia-v ing husking rolls and a discharge elevator adapted to be moved into and out of operative position and to receive'corn ears from said husking rolls when in operative position, ofme'ans movablymounted on said elevator adapted to receive said corny ears L 1 iioin sain husking rolls and deliver them to said elevator, said means being positioned between said elevator and said husking rolls when operative position,` and adapted to be moved out of such position when the elevator is in inoperative or transport position.

Li. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom, means mounting said elevator 0n said harvester for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper mounted on said elevator for guiding the corn ears tosaid elevator, and means connecting said hopper with said elevator whereby said hopper may be moved into and. out of operative position .relative to said elevator.

5. The combination with a corn harvester said-harvester for'inovement into and outof operative position, of a hopper for guiding the ycorn ears to said elevator pivotally mounted on said elevator and adapted to be moved into and out of operative position.

7. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom, means mounting said elevator on said harvester for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper for guiding the corn ears to said elevator pivotally mounted on said elevator in proximity to said harvester and adapted to be moved into and out of operative position.

8. The combination with a. corn harvester having anV elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom, means supporting the elevator for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper for guiding the corn ears to vsaid elevator, and means connecting the elevator with said hopper for moving said hopper on said elevator into and out of operative position.

L9. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator .for discharging corn ears therefrom, means supporting the elevator for movement into and out of operative position, of a. hopper for the receiving end of said elevator, and means for pivotally connecting said hopper to said elevator, said means comprising links pivot-ally connected with said hopper whereby said hopper is adapted to be moved into and out of operative position.

10. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom, means supporting the elevator' for movement into and out of operative position, of a khopper for the receiving end of said elevator, and means for pivotally connecting f said hopper to said elevator, said means comprising links pivotally connected With said hopper and withsaid elevator whereby said hopper is adapted to be moved into and out of operative position. l

1l. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears l`therefrom, means supporting the elevator for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper for the receiving end of said elevater, means for pivotally connecting said hopper to said elevator,fsaid means comprising linksv pivotally connected with said hopper and with said elevator for moving said hopper into and out of operative position, and means mounted on said elevator and coacting with said links for preventing accidental movement of saidlinks when thehopper is in operative position. Y v

12. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for dischargingcorn ears therefrom, means supporting the elevator for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper for the receiving end of said elevator, means for pivotally connecting said hopper to said elevator, said means comprising links pivotally connected with said hoper and with said elevator for moving said liopper into and out of operative position, and detent clips mounted on said elevatorand coacting with said links for preventing accidental movement of said links when the hopper is in operative position.

13. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom, and meanssupporting the elevator for movement into and out of operative position, ofa hopper for the receiving end of said elevator, means connecting said hopper with said elevator whereby said hopper may be moved into and out of operative position relatively to said elevator, and means on the lower edges of the sides of said hopper for receiving the upper edges of the side walls of the elevator to close the opening between said hopper and said elevator when said hop per is in operative position.

14. The combination with a corn harvester having husking rolls and a discharge elevator, means supporting the elevator for movement into and out of operative position, said elevator adapted to receive corn ears from saidhusking rolls when in operativer positionof a hopper, means connecting said hopper with'said elevator whereby said hopper may be moved'into and out of operative position relative to said elevator and to receive the lcorn ears from said husking rolls and guide themto said elevator` when in operative position, said hopper being adapted to be moved out of operative position when the elevator is moved out of operative position.

15. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator'for discharging corn ears therefrom, of a hopper for guiding the corn ears to said elevator, means connecting said hopper with said elevator whereby said hop'- per may bekmoved into and out of operative position relative to said elevator, the side walls ofvsaid hopper embracing said elevator when ininoperative position.

16. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom, means mounting said elevator on said harvester for movement into and ont of operative position, of ahopper for guiding the corn ears to said elevator, means connecting said hopper with said elevator whereby said hopper may be moved into and out of operative position relative to said elevator, the side walls of said hopper extending substantially ,parallel to said elevator when moved into operative position and transversely tosaid elevator when moved to inoperative position.

Y 17, The combination with a corn harvester having a frame andan elevator pivotally mounted on said frame in a position to receive ears of corn therefrom, of a hopper means'including parallel strips detachably engaging said velevator for mounting said hopper in .the space between the harvester and elevator for guidingy corn ears into the latter, said means permitting said hopper' to be removed from its normal position to permit the elevator to be moved out of its receiving position.

18. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom and means mounting said elevator on said harvester for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper normally positioned between -said elevator and said harvester when the elevator is in operative position for guiding the corn ears to said elevator, and means detachably engaging said elevator for supporting said hopper in said operative position said means providing for shifting said hopper out of operative position when said elevator is moved to its inoperative position.

19. The combination with a corn harvester having a frame, a husking boX mounted on said frame, an elevator pivotally mounted at its lower end on said frame adjacent the end of said husling box and normally held in an upwardly inclined position, of a hopper disposed in the space between the end of the huslring box and the lower end of the elevator for guiding corn ears from the husking box into the elevator, means for securing said hopper in said position, said means being arranged to facilitate removal of the hopper therefrom to permit the elevator to be raised in a position of substantial parallelism with the end of the husking box.

20. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom and means mounting said elevator on said harvester for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper, and means on the hopper slidably engaging the elevator for supporting said hopper between said elevator and said harvester for guiding the corn ears to said elevator when said elevator is in operative position, said means being operable out of engagement with the elevator to move said hopper out of said normal position when the elevator is moved to inoperative position.

21. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom and means mounting said elevator on said harvester for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper, and means for pivotally supporting said hopper between said elevator and said harvester for guiding the corn ears to said elevator when said elevator is in operative position, said means being operable to swing said hopper out of said normal position when the elevator is moved to inoperative position.

22. The combination with a corn harvester having an elevator for discharging corn ears therefrom and means mounting said elevator on said harvester for movement into and out of operative position, of a hopper, and means including pivoted links supporting said hopper whereby said hopper may be moved into operative position between said elevator and said harvester for guiding corn ears to said elevator when said elevator is in operative position, and moved out of operative position when the elevator is moved to its inoperative position.

In witness whereof, we hereunto subscribe ournames this 4th day of November, 1929.

WILBUR J. COULTAS. NOLAN D. COLVIN. 

